11.08.2008

Terex acquires Fantuzzi

Terex has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Fantuzzi Industries the Italian headquartered port crane, straddle carrier, rubber tyred gantry crane and reach-stacker manufacturer.

The deal is valued at €215 million and is expected to close towards the end of the year, most likely within the next 60 days. The price paid incorporates settlement of the €50 million bond payment that Fantuzzi missed in July, accelerating its need to sell.

Fantuzzi has three production facilities in Italy, one in Germany and one in China along with 17 sales and service locations around the world. Its 2007 revenues were around €447 million and it employs around 2,230.

Fantuzzi will join the Terex cranes business and plans include the merging of the Terex reach-stacker product line with the Fantuzzi reach-stacker and mast type container handler product range. Other products include Noell branded straddle carriers, both Fantuzzi and Noell branded rail and rubber tired gantry cranes and Reggiane mobile harbor and ship-to-shore cranes.
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A Fantuzzi empy container reach-stacker

Ron DeFeo, Terex chairman and chief executive officer said: "This acquisition provides us with an important growth opportunity in the intermodal transportation area of infrastructure. The acquisition is an excellent fit with our strategy of expanding our market presence in related product areas and is a natural extension of our Cranes business. We expect this acquisition to be accretive to Terex earnings per share by the end of 2009."

Rick Nichols, president, Terex Cranes added: "We are truly excited to welcome these businesses and their team members, distributors and customers to the Terex Cranes family. This acquisition represents an exciting opportunity for both companies, and together we will ensure that our customers in the port equipment and lifting segments will be the ultimate beneficiaries of our expanded product and service offerings."

Vertikal Comment

This deal not only adds $670 million to Terex’s revenues, but it also makes it one of only two crane companies that produce marine cranes along with mobile, tower and crawler cranes – Liebherr being the other.

With the exception of its reach-stacker line, which it acquired with PPM, Terex will find few direct synergies between its Terex Crane and Fantuzzi businesses. Marine cranes have a different clientele, different distribution and different buying patterns.

It is likely to run it as a separate business within the crane group just as Liebherr does. It would be an error to try and combine it too closely with its other cranes, the basics, from manufacturing to marketing, are so different. One of the few things they have in common is the word crane.

However Fantuzzi does have some advanced electronics and AC drive technology which Terex might be able to benefit from in its tower crane business. It might also be able to introduce some of its other crane products into the massive Fantuzzi plant in China.

At the end of the day Terex has snapped up a bargain which adds another growth opportunity within an industry that fits with its other product sectors. It also takes it to the number two position worldwide in reachstackers and gives it market leadership in straddle carriers.